I woke up yesterday to Omnicom’s CEO John Wren telling CNBC that the merger will result in a more ‘nimble’ agency. Really? As an advertising man who worked at Saatchi & Saatchi when it was the world’s largest agency, I can tell you that bigger is the enemy of nimble.

While the issues facing huge-to-small advertising agencies are complex, the most painful issue is the reduction in profitability that started in the 1980s. The only advantage I can see from this merger is a reduction in the new agency’s cost structure, which of course means fewer employees. Will this make them stronger in the face of evolving competition? Only if they use some of that cash to be one of the companies that is involved in the evolution itself.

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One Comment

This move is solely for the benefit of about a total of 30 top executives. This solidifies their retirements and 25-30% of the rank and file staffers will be looking for new jobs. Hopefully, some of them will start their own agencies and crank out some great advertising.